Meaning & use
cohabitate
Last updated
Meanings
verbintransitiveformal
To live together in the same home as a couple without being married.
Grammar: No object; often followed by with: cohabitate with a partner.
Patterns
- cohabitate with someone
They decided to cohabitate for a year before getting married.
Many couples cohabitate before making a legal commitment.
He cohabitates with his girlfriend in a small apartment.
verbintransitiveformal
To live in the same place or area peacefully, as different groups or animals.
Grammar: No object; used for groups and species: wolves cohabitate with sheep.
Patterns
- cohabitate with something
Farmers and wildlife must learn to cohabitate in the valley.
Two species of birds cohabitate on the island.
Different communities cohabitate in the old quarter.
Word forms
| third person singular | cohabitates |
|---|---|
| past tense | cohabitated |
| past participle | cohabitated |
| -ing form | cohabitating |
Common combinations
- cohabitate with a partner
- Many people cohabitate with a partner before marriage.
- cohabitate peacefully
- The two species cohabitate peacefully.
- couples who cohabitate
- Couples who cohabitate may face different tax rules.
- choose to cohabitate
- They chose to cohabitate to save on rent.
- cohabitate before marriage
- Surveys show many adults cohabitate before marriage.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cohabit
- Cohabit is the older, shorter form with the same meaning, preferred in some formal writing.
- live together
- Live together is the plain everyday phrase and sounds far less technical.
- share a home
- Share a home can involve friends or roommates, not just couples.
- coexist
- Coexist means to exist peacefully at the same time and need not involve sharing a living space.
Opposites
Word family
- cohabit verb
- the shorter form of the same verb
- cohabitation noun
- living together as a couple
- cohabitant noun
- someone who lives with a partner
- habitat noun
- the natural home of an animal or plant
Commonly confused: cohabitate or coincide? cohabitate or cohabit?
cohabitate vs coincide
Coincide means to happen at the same time. Cohabitate means to live together.
cohabitate vs cohabit
Cohabit is the older verb. Cohabitate is its newer variant, and both are accepted today.
Practice
The couple decided to ___ for a year before deciding whether to marry.
Choose one answer.
Cohabitate means to live together as a couple. Commute, coincide and collaborate are real verbs but do not mean sharing a home.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cohabitate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.